Three Days for the Planet

Monday 04/06/2018

Arbor Day

Trees are the guardians of soil, water and air. Beauty and shade are among their other gifts. Arbor Day on June 5th is a perfect excuse to plant for the planet. There are projects listed on Trees that Count or you can devise your own. That may just be one small tree, a seedling for the future, a lifetime friend in your garden.

World Environment Day is a global event that you can connect with here.

Beat Plastic Pollution is the theme of this year’s World Environment Day. There has been a lot of discussion about single use plastic bags as well as some musing on changes in packaging. However, our supermarkets are still brimming with bags and there does not seem to be a committed campaign for suppliers to remove over packaged food. So it’s down to us personally. Avoid plastic and Styrofoam packaging. Speak with your food merchants about the packaging. Some shoppers are even willing to remove the packaging before leaving the store to illustrate their desire for simple non-plastic packaging. And of course, we should all get the habit of keeping your reusable bags in the car. Day-by-day it’s up to us to Beat Plastic Pollution.

World Oceans Day

The idea of the day was proposed by Canada at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. Plastic pollution prevention and cleaning the ocean of marine litter are the current main focus. Things are so much worse now that it would be wise to consider every day Oceans Day and avoid plastic packaging. But remember that what goes in our streams and our storm water systems are also potential ocean pollutants. Leave nothing but your footprints on our beaches and why not take a bag with you to pick up tidal trash or become a plogger.

Currently, each year more than 7 billion tonnes of rubbish makes its way into the sea. Sustainable Coastlines have made that commitment and built a wonderful organisation that knows fishing for trash and ocean pollutants can be social, fun and creative. Project Jonah knows the oceans are sick and have prepared a beach Clean-Up Kit.